WKU News

Abigail Willhoite, a May graduate from Frankfort, will represent Western Kentucky University as one of 15 candidates vying for the crown of 2024 Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival Queen this weekend in Pineville.

Willhoite received a bachelor’s degree in Psychology with a minor in Social Work. This fall she will begin pursuing a master’s degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling.

Each May, colleges and universities from Kentucky select one representative to participate in the Kentucky Mountain Laurel Festival during the Memorial Day weekend.

Each year since 1931, the participating candidates attend the festival in Pineville. During the coronation ceremony, each candidate is expected to perform an original and elaborate 15-second curtsey to the current Kentucky governor, who later crowns the queen.

Willhoite and the other candidates will participate in festival events Thursday through Sunday (May 23-26).  The 2024 Queen’s coronation ceremony will begin at 2 p.m. ET Saturday (May 25) in the Laurel Cove Amphitheater at Pine Mountain State Park.

For more about the festival, visit https://www.kmlf.org/

Contact: Amelia Kolb, amelia.kolb@wku.edu

-WKU-

Western Kentucky University prides itself on positioning its students, faculty and staff for long term success. As a student-centered, applied research university, WKU helps students expand on classroom learning by integrating education with real-world applications in the communities we serve. Our hilltop campus is located in Bowling Green, Kentucky, which was recently named by Reader’s Digest as one of the nicest towns in America, just an hour’s drive from Nashville, Tennessee.